UBC student flies from Calgary to save money

Vancouver’s sky-high rents are forcing many residents to find creative ways to live in the city.

Tim Chen turned to creativity to avoid paying rent in Vancouver.

For Chen, a final-year art student at the University of British Columbia, the commute looks very different.

“I thought, why don’t I just stay in Calgary and fly out here? It’s about an hour flight, it’s like taking the bus,” he said.

Chen is originally from Calgary. He previously lived in Vancouver while attending UBC, but gave up his rental when he went on vacation in the fall.

When he came back, he was shocked by the price.

“When I checked the house price, I thought, ‘Oh man, there’s a big increase!'” he said. “I have to pay about $2,500 in rent, so I don’t think it’s feasible.”

He started looking at the price of flights from Calgary to Vancouver and saw that they cost about $150 for a round trip.

He attends two classes a week at the university.

In total, he pays about $1,200 a month for flights while living at home with his parents in Calgary. Ultimately, it’s much cheaper than the average price of a one-bedroom apartment in Vancouver, which is about $2,100.

“I have three hours of lessons in total. After the lesson, I go back to the bus and to the airport!” Chen said.

Vancouver remains Canada’s most expensive city for renters. But finding a place to rent is even harder with the city’s vacancy rate at 0.9 percent.

Chen plans to fly to UBC for his two classes until the end of the academic year, when he graduates.